Method of building construction

ABSTRACT

A method of construction. A first step involves stabilizing prefabricated load bearing walls for an underlying vertical level of a multi-story building. The walls have opposed surfaces and a top peripheral edge. A second step involves securing floor joists for an overlying vertical level to at least one of the opposed surfaces of the walls of one of the underlying vertical level. A third step involves installing prefabricated load bearing walls for the overlying vertical level along the top peripheral edge of the underlying vertical level. The walls have opposed surfaces and a top peripheral edge. The steps set forth above are repeated until a desired number of vertical levels are installed.

FIELD

The present invention relates to a method of building construction,which makes it easier to incorporate prefabricated components into thebuilding.

BACKGROUND

A building can be constructed more rapidly, if some portions of thebuilding, such as load bearing walls, can be constructed off site andthen incorporated on site into the building. However, problems have beenexperienced in incorporating such prefabricated components into thebuilding with current building methods.

SUMMARY

Accordingly, there is provided a method of construction. A first stepinvolves stabilizing prefabricated load bearing walls for an underlyingvertical level of a multi-story building. The walls have opposedsurfaces and a top peripheral edge. A second step involves securingfloor joists for an overlying vertical level to at least one of theopposed surfaces of the walls of one of the underlying vertical level. Athird step involves installing prefabricated load bearing walls for theoverlying vertical level along the top peripheral edge of the underlyingvertical level. The walls have opposed surfaces and a top peripheraledge. The steps set forth above are repeated until a desired number ofvertical levels are installed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features of the invention will become more apparent fromthe following description in which reference is made to the appendeddrawings, the drawings are for the purpose of illustration only and arenot intended to in any way limit the scope of the invention to theparticular embodiment or embodiments shown, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a detailed side elevation view, in section, of load bearingwall and floor joist detail in accordance with the present method ofconstruction, using joist supports with upper attachment flanges.

FIG. 2 is a detailed side elevation view, in section, of load bearingwall and floor joist detail in accordance with the present method ofconstruction, using a joist support with an upper attachment hook.

FIG. 3 is a detailed side elevation view, in section, of load bearingwall and floor joist detail in accordance with the present method ofconstruction, using C channel joist supports.

FIG. 4 is a detailed side elevation view, in section, of load bearingwall and floor joist detail in accordance with the present method ofconstruction, using a combination of a joist support with an upperattachment flange and a C channel joist support.

FIG. 5 is a detailed side elevation view, in section, of load bearingwall and floor joist detail in accordance with the present method ofconstruction, using a combination of a joist support with an upperattachment hook and a C channel joist support.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a joist support with an upper attachmentflange.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a joist support with an upper attachmenthook.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a C channel joist support.

FIG. 9 is a side elevation view of a modular bathroom unit and exteriorload-bearing wall.

FIG. 10 is a detailed side elevation view, in section, of load bearingwall and floor joist detail of FIG. 9.

FIG. 11 is a detailed side elevation view, in section, of an exteriorload bearing wall.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A method of construction will now be described with reference to FIG. 1through 11.

Load Bearing Wall Installation

This method was developed for use in a light gauge steel constructionproject of twelve stories. In that project all exterior and interiorbearing walls were prefabricated off site and then incorporated into thebuilding. In that project all bathrooms were delivered to the site asprefabricated bathroom modules. There will now be provided anexplanation as to how the prefabricated bearing walls were incorporatedinto the building and an explanation as to how the bathroom modules weresimilarly incorporated into the building.

Referring to FIG. 1, an underlying wall 20 is stabilized as part of amulti-story building. Underlying wall 20 is a prefabricated load bearingwall, underlying wall 20 having opposed surfaces 22 and 24, and a topperipheral edge 26. Underlying wall 20 is part of an underlying verticallevel 28 in the multi-story building. In order to complete underlyingvertical level 28, numerous underlying walls 20 may be needed. A floorjoist 30 is secured to opposed surface 22 of underlying vertical level28. The purpose of floor joist 30 is to support an overlying verticallevel 32. Overlying vertical level 32 is defined by a floor 34. Numerousfloor joists 30 may be necessary to support floor 34 adequately. Floor34 may consist of a concrete topping on metal docking. An overlying wall36 is then installed along top peripheral edge 26. Underlying andoverlying walls 20 and 36, respectively may contain studs 37 and bracing39. Studs 37 give multi-story building more structural support. Bracing39 provides a suitable surface for securing floor joists 30 to.Overlying wall 36 is a prefabricated load bearing wall, overlying wall36 having opposed surfaces 38 and 40, and a top peripheral edge 41.Overlying wall 36 and floor 34 make up overlying vertical level 32. Theprocess of stabilizing underlying walls 20, securing floor joists 30,and installing overlying walls 36 is repeated until a desired number ofvertical levels are installed to complete the multi-story building. Aseach overlying vertical level 32 is secured on top of underlyingvertical level 28, overlying vertical level 32 becomes the nextunderlying vertical level 28, and the process is repeated. Thisconstruction method may be used to quickly and efficiently put up thestructure of a multi-story building using prefabricated load bearingwalls.

Floor joist 30 may be suspended from top peripheral edge 26 ofunderlying wall 20.

This may be accomplished by using a joist support 42 that extends alongall or a portion of underlying wall 20. Because joist support 42 extendsalong underlying wall 20, it may not be necessary to have floor joist 30align with the studs in underlying wall 20. Joist support 42 has anupper attachment 44, a lower attachment 46, and a connecting web 48.Connecting web 48 extends between upper attachment 44 and lowerattachment 46. There may be holes (not shown) on joist support 42, holesbeing used to secure joist support 42 to various materials usingconventional methods. Upper attachment 44 engages top peripheral edge 26of underlying wall 20 and lower attachment 46 engages floor joist 30. Inthis manner, floor joist 30 is secured to opposed surface 22 ofunderlying vertical level 28.

Referring to FIG. 1, upper attachment 44 of joist support 42 consists ofa flange 49. This embodiment of joist support 42 is shown in greaterdetail in FIG. 6. The dimensions of upper attachment 44, lowerattachment 46 and connecting web 48 may differ depending on thedimensions of both floor joist 30 and top peripheral edge 26. Referringback to FIG. 1, floor joist 30 is secured to joist support 42. Thisfigure shows a side elevation view of adjacent interior rooms 50 and 52in a multi-story building. Opposed surfaces 38 and 40 face interiorrooms 50 and 52, respectively. Interior room 52 contains a floor 54,floor 54 having the same characteristics as floor 34. Floor 54 is alsopart of overlying vertical level 32. Supporting floor 54 is a floorjoist 56 and a joist support 58. Floor joist 56 and joist support 58share the same basic elements described above for floor joist 30 andjoist support 42, respectively. Floor joist 56 may have a differentdepth than floor joist 30 as shown in FIG. 1. In the embodiment shown inFIG. 1, screws 60 are used to secure floor joists 30 and 56 to joistsupports 42 and 58, respectively. Screws 60 secure floor joist 30 andjoist support 42 to opposed surface 22 of underlying wall 20 throughholes (not shown) in connecting web 48. Floor joist 30 is also securedto joist support 42 at lower attachment 46 using screws 60. In addition,upper attachment 44 is secured to top peripheral edge 26 directly usingscrews 60. Floor joist 56 and joist support 58 are secured in anidentical fashion as described above for floor joist 30 and joistsupport 42. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, joist supports 42 and 56are secured over top of each other to top peripheral edge 26 usingscrews 60.

Another embodiment of a joist support 62 is shown in FIG. 7. Joistsupport 62 shares all the same elements as joist support 42 and isintended to extend along all or part of an underlying wall, with theaddition of a hook 64 connected to upper attachment 44. This embodimentof joist support 62 is used in FIG. 2. FIG. 2 details a side elevationview of underlying and overlying vertical levels 28 and 32,respectively. In this figure, opposed surfaces 24 and 40 face anexterior 66 of the building, while opposed surfaces 22 and 38 face aninterior room 68. Floor joist 30 is secured to joist support 62 asdescribed above in the previous embodiment for joist support 42. Joistsupport 62 is secured to underlying wall 20 as described above for theprevious embodiment, with the addition that hook 64 is secured toopposed surface 24 of underlying wall 20. By securing hook 64 to opposedsurface 24, joist support 62 is given extra stability.

A further embodiment of a joist support 70 is shown in FIG. 8. Joistsupport 70 has an upper attachment 72, a lower attachment 74, aconnecting web 75, and is designed to extend along all or part of awall. Upper attachment 72 consists of a C channel support 76 as shown. Cchannel support 76 defines a joist-receiving cavity 78. Referring toFIG. 3, C channel support 76 is secured to opposed surface 24 ofunderlying wall 20. In this figure, opposed surfaces 24 and 40 face aninterior room 80 of the building, while opposed surfaces 22 and 38 facean exterior 82. Joist receiving cavity 78 is used to secure floor joist30 to opposed surface 24 of underlying wall 20 of underlying verticallevel 28. Floor joist 30 is secured to joist support 70 using screws 60.Floor joist 30 and joist support 70 are also secured to opposed surface24 through connecting web 75 using screws 60.

FIG. 4 details an embodiment of a method of construction using joistsupports 42 and 70 in combination. Opposed surfaces 22 and 38 ofunderlying and overlying walls 20 and 36, respectively, face a corridor84 of the building. Opposed surfaces 24 and 40 of underlying andoverlying walls 20 and 36, respectively, face an interior 86 of thebuilding. Opposed surface 22 of underlying wall 20 has secured to it Cchannel support 76 of joist support 70. Opposed surface 24 of underlyingwall 20 has secured to it joist support 42 with flange 49. Joist support42 is also secured to top peripheral edge 26. C channel support 76 andjoist support 42 support floor joists 88 and 90, respectively. Floorjoists 88 and 90 support floors 92 and 94, respectively. Floor joist 88and 90 may be of different sizes, as shown in FIG. 4, in order toproperly support different sizes of floors 92 and 94.

FIG. 5 details an embodiment of a method for construction using joistsupports 62 and 70 in combination. In this embodiment, there are twounderlying walls 96 and 98, and two overlying walls 100 and 102.Underlying wall 96 has opposed surfaces 104 and 106, and a topperipheral edge 108. Underlying wall 98 has opposed surfaces 110 and112, and a top peripheral edge 114. Overlying wall 100 has opposedsurfaces 116 and 118, while overlying wall 102 has opposed surfaces 120and 122. Underlying walls 96 and 98 are part of underlying verticallevel 28, and overlying walls 100 and 102 are part of overlying verticallevel 32. Underlying walls 96 and 98 are secured under overlying walls100 and 102, respectively. Opposed surfaces 104 and 116 of underlyingand overlying walls 96 and 100, respectively, face an interior room 124of the building. Opposed surfaces 112 and 122 of underlying andoverlying walls 98 and 102, respectively, face an interior room 126 ofthe building. Opposed surface 104 of underlying wall 96 has joistsupport 70 secured to it. Opposed surface 112 of underlying wall 98 hassecured to it joist support 62 with hook 64. Joist support 62 is alsosecured to top peripheral edge 114, and hook 64 is secured to opposedsurface 110. C channel support 76 and joist support 62 support a floorjoist 127 and 128, respectively. Floor joists 127 and 128 support floors130 and 132, respectively. Floor joists 127 and 128 may be of differentsizes, as shown in FIG. 5, in order to properly support different sizesof floors 130 and 132. The configuration shown in FIG. 5 is called a“party room” configuration. By using double the number of walls,effective soundproofing is achieved between interior rooms 124 and 126.Underlying walls 96 and 98 and overlying walls 100 and 102, may containstuds 134 and bracing 136. Opposed surfaces 106 and 110 of underlyingwalls 96 and 98, respectively, face each other. Opposed surfaces 118 and120 of overlying walls 100 and 102, respectively, face each other. Topperipheral edge 108 is secured to top peripheral edge 114 using a centresupport 133. Centre support 133 is secured to top peripheral edges 108and 114 using screws 60.

Referring to FIG. 11, exterior cladding panels 200 may be attached towalls 20 and 36 on an exterior face of the building to provideprotection from the external environment. Exterior cladding panel 200 ismounted on exterior grade drywall sheathing 202 such as by using anadhesive as is common with EIFS panels. Drywall 202 is in turn mountedon opposed surfaces 24 and 40. Drywall 202 may have an air vapour seal203 applied to its surface. Cladding panel 200 may be, for example, 3″insulation that includes sloped metal through-wall flashing 204installed along the base of cladding panel 200. Cladding panel 200 isinstalled by applying a bead of sealant 206 along the top edge of alower panel 200. Liquid applied envelope seal 208 is also applied alongthe top of the exterior drywall 202 on the lower panel 200 to seal thejoint between the drywall 200. Envelope seal is also applied alongvertical joints between panels as well. Envelope seal 208 acts as aninitial air barrier and a back-up water seal. A low expansion sprayfoam/air and vapour barrier type insulation 210 is applied to thehorizontal and vertical joints to seal the joints and provide insulationat the joint locations. Caulking dams (not shown) should also installedat the ends of the through wall flashing to prevent moisture fromflowing off the ends of the flashing. The joints may then be sealedusing a high quality exterior sealant 212. When properly installed,flashing 204 should overlap with any membrane flashing and air andvapour barrier. An exterior finish 214, such as an acrylic stucco finishis then applied to the outer surface of cladding panel 200.

Modular Bathroom Installation

FIG. 9 details a method of construction using modular structures.Overlying module 138 is stacked above underlying module 140. Bothoverlying and underlying modules 138 and 140 are prefabricated loadbearing modular structures. By stacking overlying module 138 onunderlying module 140, a column 142 of modular structures is formed,column 142 having a defining wall 144. An underlying wall 146 isstabilized in spaced relation to column 142. Underlying wall 146 is aprefabricated load bearing wall, underlying wall 146 having opposedsurfaces 148 and 150, and a top peripheral edge 152. Underlying wall 146is part of an underlying vertical level 154 of a multi-story building.In order to complete underlying vertical level 154, numerous underlyingwalls 146 may be needed. A floor joist 30 is secured to opposed surface150 of underlying vertical level 154. Floor joist 30 is also secured todefining wall 144. The purpose of floor joist 30 is to support anoverlying vertical level 156. Floor joist 30 may be secured to bothdefining wall 144 and opposed surface 150 using any of the abovedescribed embodiments of joist supports 42, 62 or 70. In FIG. 9, floorjoist 30 is secured to opposed surface 150 using joist support 42.Overlying vertical level 156 is defined by a floor 158. Numerous floorjoists 30 may be necessary to support floor 158 adequately. Floor 158may consist of a concrete topping on metal docking. An overlying wall160 is then installed along top peripheral edge 152. Overlying wall 160is a prefabricated load bearing wall, overlying wall 160 having opposedsurfaces 162 and 164, and a top peripheral edge 165. Overlying wall 160and floor 158 make up overlying vertical level 156. The processdescribed above is then repeated until a desired number of verticallevels are installed to complete the multi-story building. As eachoverlying vertical level 156 is secured on top of underlying verticallevel 154, overlying vertical level 156 becomes the next underlyingvertical level 154, and the process is repeated. This constructionmethod may be used to quickly and efficiently put up modular structuresof a multi-story building using prefabricated load bearing walls. All ofthe embodiments of construction methods described above may be includedin this embodiment.

The modules 138 and 140 of FIG. 9 may be bathroom modules. Withinoverlying module 138 is positioned a module floor 166. Below modulefloor 166 is positioned an underlying roof 168, so that there is aplumbing space 170 between module floor 166 and underlying roof 168.Underlying roof 168 forms part of underlying vertical level 154, and islower than floor 158. The purpose of plumbing space 170 is to make roomfor a drainage system 172 to be installed below overlying module 138.Drainage system 172 may be any system of drainage or plumbing devices orpipes necessary for multi-story building. Underlying roof 168 may besupported by floor joists 30 (not shown). The embodiment of a method ofbuilding construction shown in FIG. 9 is shown in more detail in FIG.10. An opposed surface 174 is positioned on the side of column 142opposite to defining wall 144. Opposed surface 174 faces a bathroom 176,while defining wall 144 faces an interior room 177. Secured to opposedsurface 174 and defining wall 144 are joist supports 178 and 180,respectively. Joist supports 178 and 180 both share the same elements asjoist support 70, described above. Secured to joist supports 178 and 180are floor joists 182 and 184, respectively. Floor joists 182 and 184support module floor 166 and floor 158, respectively. Below module floor166 is positioned underlying roof 168. In the embodiment shown,underlying roof 168 is secured to underlying module 140. Plumbing space170 is positioned between underlying roof 166 and module floor 166 inorder to provide room for the appropriate drainage piping and plumbingelements.

In all embodiments of the disclosed method of building construction,screws 60 are used as a securing means, although other means of securingmay be used. An example of an alternate means of securing may involvesecuring with nails or bolts.

In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in itsnon-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included,but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to anelement by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibilitythat more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearlyrequires that there be one and only one of the elements.

It will be apparent to one skilled in the art that modifications may bemade to the illustrated embodiment without departing from the spirit andscope of the invention as hereinafter defined in the Claims.

1. A method of construction, comprising the steps of: stabilizingprefabricated load bearing walls for an underlying vertical level of amulti-story building, the walls having opposed surfaces and a topperipheral edge; securing floor joists for an overlying vertical levelto at least one of the opposed surfaces of the walls of one of theunderlying vertical level; installing prefabricated load bearing wallsfor the overlying vertical level along the top peripheral edge of theunderlying vertical level, the walls having opposed surfaces and a topperipheral edge; and repeating the steps set forth above until a desirednumber of vertical levels are installed.
 2. The method of claim 1,including a step of suspending joists from the top peripheral edge ofthe walls.
 3. The method of claim 6, the suspending of the joists beingaccomplished using a joist support having an upper attachment, a lowerattachment and a connecting web extending between the upper attachmentand the lower attachment, the upper attachment engaging the topperipheral edge of the walls of the underlying vertical level and thelower attachment engaging the floor joists to secure the floor joists toone the opposed surfaces of the walls of the underlying vertical level.4. The method of claim 7, the upper attachment being a flange.
 5. Themethod of claim 7, the upper attachment being a hook.
 6. The method ofclaim 1, including a step of using a C channel support defining a joistreceiving cavity, the C channel support being secured to one of theopposed surfaces of the walls of the underlying vertical level with thejoist receiving cavity used to secure the floor joist to one of theopposed surfaces of the walls of the underlying vertical level.
 7. Amethod of construction, comprising the steps of: stacking aprefabricated load bearing overlying modular structure on top of aprefabricated load bearing underlying modular structure to start theformation of a column of modular structures having a defining wall;stabilizing prefabricated load bearing walls for an underlying verticallevel of a multi-story building in spaced relation to the column ofmodular structures, the walls having opposed surfaces and a topperipheral edge; securing floor joists for the overlying vertical levelbetween the defining walls of the column of modular structure and one ofthe opposed surfaces of the walls of the underlying vertical level;installing prefabricated load bearing walls for an overlying verticallevel along the top peripheral edge of the underlying vertical level,the walls having opposed surfaces and a top peripheral edge; stackinganother modular structure on the column of modular structures andrepeating the steps set forth above until a desired number of verticallevels are installed.
 8. The method of claim 11, including a step ofsuspending joists from the top peripheral edge of the walls.
 9. Themethod of claim 12, the suspending of the joists being accomplishedusing a joist support having an upper attachment, a lower attachment anda connecting web extending between the upper attachment and the lowerattachment, the upper attachment engaging the top peripheral edge of thewalls of the underlying vertical level and the lower attachment engagingthe floor joists to secure the floor joists to one the opposed surfacesof the walls of the underlying vertical level.
 10. The method of claim13, the upper attachment being a flange.
 11. The method of claim 13, theupper attachment being a hook.
 12. The method of claim 11, including astep of using a C channel support defining a joist receiving cavity, theC channel support being secured to one of the opposed surfaces of thewalls of the underlying vertical level with the joist receiving cavityused to secure the floor joist to one of the opposed surfaces of thewalls of the underlying vertical level.
 13. The method of claim 1, atleast one of the walls being an exterior wall, and further comprisingthe step of attaching at least one exterior cladding panel to theexterior wall.